Lesko: Are We Selling Privacy to Save Money?

Jason: Could the lightbulb that saves you money also be watching your every move? Greg Lesko of Lesko Financial has some insight. Greg.

Greg: Thanks Jason. As technology advances, new products help us spend less and save more. But sometimes, they involve a choice between frugality and privacy.

One example are offers from car insurance companies to reduce premiums if you let them install a black box that monitors your driving. Soon, we may face a similar dilemma with led lightbulbs. They save on energy and last much longer. But led's can also be embedded with computer chips.

Developers are using this to create apps to let a smartphone remotely turn lights on or off. They can also pinpoint your location, to turn the lights on as you get closer to home. It's a feature like this that has privacy advocates concerned.

Jason: What are their fears?

Greg: First, LEDs in stores could start keeping track of your purchases or bombarding your smartphone with special offers. A bigger problem is that LED streetlights and those in public spaces can include built-in cameras literally watching your every move.

CBS visited a Silicon Valley building where parking lot LEDs were connected to cameras tracking and recording people's movements. CBS concluded that, with the new technology, "there's no end to the information you can gather."

Jason: Are any controls on such uses in the works?

Greg: Not quite yet. We're at the point in the development of new technologies where the science is getting ahead of social and ethical concerns. But as the use of smart LED lights becomes more widespread, let's hope that the rest of society begins to catch up.